Filling Basins, the First Fall Ex

A choral piece of deep ensemble relation, Filling Basins tells a story of the 1881 Washerwomen Strike in Atlanta, GA. Six Black women tell their stories collectively and in small vignettes, bringing to life themes of camaraderie, womanhood, the Jim Crow south, and the will to fight back in the face of violently stratified institutions and conditions. Their lives begin to unfold as one woman remembers the lynching of her mother and as others recall aggressive encounters with the white folk for whom they work. Together, they form The Washing Society and solicit both black and white women to fight alongside them to increase pay. A relentless revolution begins at a well and takes over a city. Along the way, the women reckon with what it means to have a body, to love their bodies in the face of exploitation, to become whole, to make joy out of the iron pot of life. There is a price to be paid for one’s future, for one’s children, and these women stop at nothing to make room for those that will come after them.

Our Charity

In 1981, the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc. (NCBW) was formed with a mission to advocate on behalf of black women and girls to promote leadership development and gender equity in the areas of health, education and economic empowerment. During its 34-year history, NCBW has chartered over 75 chapters with a cumulative membership of more than 7,500 women, representing 28 states.